Medical areas of focus
Using our platform, we are developing mRNA medicines for diverse uses and delivering them to patients across the globe. We are currently focusing on 4 medical areas – infectious diseases, immuno-oncology, rare diseases and autoimmune disease.
What is a modality?
When we identify technologies that we believe could enable a new group of potential mRNA medicines with shared features, we call that group a modality. While the programs within a modality may target diverse diseases, they share similar mRNA characteristics, delivery technologies and manufacturing processes.
Moderna's modalities
Prophylactic vaccines
Systemic secreted & cell surface therapeutics
Cancer vaccines
Intratumoral immuno-oncology
Localized regenerative therapeutics
Systemic intracellular therapeutics
Inhaled pulmonary therapeutics
We have created seven modalities to date, but we are relentlessly working to grow this number as we discover mRNA medicines.
Medical Areas of Focus
Infectious diseases
The world needs novel, innovative approaches to address both known and future infectious disease threats.
Immuno-oncology
We are harnessing the body’s immune system to identify and kill cancer cells in the same way the immune system identifies and targets infections.
Personalised cancer vaccines
We are creating individualised, mRNA-based personalised cancer vaccines to deliver one custom-tailored medicine to one patient at a time.
Rare diseases
Moderna recognises the impact of rare diseases on patients and their families, particularly when the disease lacks any effective treatment options.
Cardiovascular diseases
We continue to explore the application of mRNA in the potential treatment of cardiovascular and other ischemic vascular diseases with the goal of addressing serious unmet needs to improve patients’ lives.
Autoimmune diseases
We are developing several potential mRNA therapeutics that we believe have the potential to help the millions of patients battling autoimmune diseases.
¹Englands Rare Disease Action Plan. Available at
Millions of people with rare diseases to benefit from faster diagnosis and better access to treatment Last Accessed August 2022.
²British Heart Foundation Statistics. Available at
Heart Statistics- Accessed August 2022